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When the Great War erupted in 1914, the US remained on their side of the ocean, deeming it to be a solely European conflict. When German submarines targeted American civilian targets, the US had no choice but become involved. Placed in charge of the US military was John J. Pershing, veteran of the hunt for Pancho Villa. The Allies wanted American men thrown into the existing military system to alleviate their appalling casualties, but Pershing refused. Rather than disperse his troops among British and French forces, Pershing wanted to keep it as an American force. That resolve resulted in shaping what is now the modern American military.